Quarrel unraveled into arrest for Barenaked Ladies singer

Jim Commentucci/The Post-Standard, 2001Steven Page of the band Barenaked Ladies performs at the Onondaga County War Memorial in November 2001. The Toronto-based band has performed several shows in Central New York over the years.

Fayetteville, NY -- The cocaine bust of Barenaked Ladies singer and guitarist Steven Page began with a quarrel with his girlfriend in a Fayetteville bar, according to court documents.

The papers, filed in Fayetteville Village Court, say that spat led to another woman trying to physically restrain Page from driving home to Toronto. Later, Page and the woman snorted drugs while police were virtually outside their door, the documents state.

Page, 38, of Toronto, had more than a quarter ounce of cocaine, police said. He was charged Friday morning with criminal possession of a controlled substance, a felony.

Page's lawyer, Mark Mahoney, of Buffalo, declined comment this afternoon. The band's Web site said "the validity of the charges against Steven will be strongly contested." Page could not be reached for comment.

Thursday night began at Mulligan's in Fayetteville, according to Stephanie Ford, 25, of 311 E. Genesee St. She shared Apartment 1 with Page's girlfriend, Christine Benedicto, 27. The women couldn't be reached for comment.

Ford's statement to police provides the following account:

The two women walked to the bar about 10 p.m. About 11 p.m., Page showed up.

"After about 30 minutes, Steven and Christine got into a huge fight because Christine was flirting with another guy. Steven left the bar and I followed him back to the apartment," Ford told police.

Dennis Nett/The Post-StandardExterior of 311 E. Genesee St. in Fayetteville where Steven Page was arrested in the first-floor apartment on a drug charge Friday.

Page said that he was going back to Canada, but Ford was concerned because Page had been drinking. Back at the apartment, Page lay down on the grass and Ford sat on him so he couldn't drive away.

"While we were on the front lawn, Christine showed up and started yelling at me not to take Steven's side. I'm not sure how it happened but Christine ended up with Steven's keys and drove away in his car leaving hers in the middle of the driveway," Ford said.

Page and Ford went inside the home. Eventually, Ford found Page at the kitchen table with a bottle that said "calcium" and contained capsules with white powder, but the rest of the label was in French.

"There was a pile of white powdery substance on the table, near one of the capsules," Ford said. "There was a Canadian bill on the table which Steven rolled up and we used it to snort the white powder.

"We never discussed what the white powder was but I thought it was cocaine," she said.

The car in the driveway at 2:04 a.m. Friday was what brought police attention to 311 E. Genesee St., said Capt. Bill Bleyle of the Manlius Police Department. The car was across the sidewalk, its door was open and no one was around, he said.

As they were investigating the car, the officers observed suspicious behavior in the kitchen, Bleyle said. He declined to specify other than saying the officers "happened upon a plain-view discovery of illegal activity."

The officers knocked on the door of the apartment and inquired about the car across the sidewalk, "at which time Stephanie stated, 'Yeah, come on in,'¤" court records state.

Inside, police found a kitchen table with a plastic bottle labeled calcium, white powder in capsules and white powder on the table, court records state.

Police quizzed Page on the powder.

"Ofc. Stanton asked Steven if he was sure that the powder he was snorting was calcium because it was testing positive for cocaine at which time Steven responded, 'Yeah, it's cocaine,'¤" court documents state.

The bottle contained 10 capsules. There was another capsule on the table and two capsules in Page's pants pocket, records state. The total weight of the cocaine was 0.314 ounces, records state.

Ford was charged with felony criminal possession of a controlled substance and with unlawful possession of marijuana, a violation.

Benedicto is facing a misdemeanor charge of criminal possession of a controlled substance. She also is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana, a violation.

Page presented Canadian identification and officers offered to contact the Canadian consulate on his behalf, Bleyle said. Page declined.

Manlius police did not know whom they had arrested until they were told by one of the women, Bleyle said.

"At that point, it was a normal drug arrest," Bleyle said.

The officers asked if he was in a band, Bleyle said, "and he said, yes, I play guitar and I'm a singer."